BC-US--Penn State-Abuse-The Latest,1st Ld-Writethru, US

May 1, 2019

The cost of the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal to Penn State has included millions of dollars in salary and legal expenses for the school president forced out more seven years ago. A federal judge’s decision Tuesday to throw out former President Graham Spanier’s child endangerment conviction comes after the school’s doled out millions to defend him and other administrators in criminal court. Penn State isn’t saying what it’s currently paying Spanier, a professor on paid administrative leave.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The Latest on a judge’s decision to throw out the conviction of former Penn State President Graham Spanier (all times local):

5:30 p.m.

The cost of the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal to Penn State has included millions of dollars in salary and legal expenses for the university president forced out more than seven years ago.

A federal judge’s decision Tuesday to throw out former President Graham Spanier’s child endangerment conviction comes after the school’s doled out millions to defend him and other administrators in criminal court.

Penn State isn’t saying what it’s currently paying Spanier, a tenured professor on paid administrative leave.

The school is largely exempt from Pennsylvania’s open records law.

Spanier’s separation agreement, reached after Sandusky’s arrest in 2011, requires Penn State to pay his legal fees related to the scandal.

The judge gave state prosecutors three months to retry Spanier, but Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro says he plans to appeal.

___

4:55 p.m.

Lawyers for former Penn State President Graham Spanier say they’re stunned by the comments from Pennsylvania’s attorney general vowing to appeal a federal judge’s decision to vacate his child endangerment conviction.

Spanier’s attorneys said Wednesday that Attorney General Josh Shapiro “blatantly and prejudicially” misrepresented the facts as he announced he would appeal.

Lawyers Sam Silver and Bruce Merenstein say there’s no evidence Spanier was personally advised children were being sexually abused.

Spanier was convicted for his actions in response to a 2001 complaint about Jerry Sandusky showering with a boy in a team locker room.

The judge gave Shapiro’s office three months to retry Spanier, but Shapiro says prosecutors will appeal to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

____

12:35 p.m.

Pennsylvania’s attorney general will appeal a federal judge’s decision to vacate the child-endangerment conviction of former Penn State President Graham Spanier.

Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced the decision Wednesday, a day after U.S. Magistrate Judge Karoline Mehalchick ruled Spanier was improperly charged under a 2007 law for actions that occurred in 2001.

Mehalchick gave Shapiro’s office three months to retry Spanier, who had been convicted for how he responded in 2001 to a complaint about former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky showering with a boy.

Shapiro says federal courts have limited power to act in state criminal cases, and argues Mehalchick exceeded that authority.

Spanier was forced out as president shortly after Sandusky’s arrest in November 2011.

The 70-year-old had been scheduled to begin serving two months in jail Wednesday.